944 research outputs found
On the growth of ammonium nitrate(III) crystals
The growth rate of NH4NO3 phase III crystals is measured and interpreted using two models. The first is a standard crystal growth model based on a spiral growth mechanism, the second outlines the concept of kinetical roughening. As the crystal becomes rough a critical supersaturation can be determined and from this the step free energy. The step free energy versus temperature turns out to be well represented by a KosterlitzÂżThouless type model. Further a phenomenological treatment of some peculiar growth observations is given
Effective one-component description of two-component Bose-Einstein condensate dynamics
We investigate dynamics in two-component Bose-Einstein condensates in the
context of coupled Gross-Pitaevskii equations and derive results for the
evolution of the total density fluctuations. Using these results, we show how,
in many cases of interest, the dynamics can be accurately described with an
effective one-component Gross-Pitaevskii equation for one of the components,
with the trap and interaction coefficients determined by the relative
differences in the scattering lengths. We discuss the model in various regimes,
where it predicts breathing excitations, and the formation of vector solitons.
An effective nonlinear evolution is predicted for some cases of current
experimental interest. We then apply the model to construct quasi-stationary
states of two-component condensates.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
Enhanced heat flow in the hydrodynamic-collisionless regime
We study the heat conduction of a cold, thermal cloud in a highly asymmetric
trap. The cloud is axially hydrodynamic, but due to the asymmetric trap
radially collisionless. By locally heating the cloud we excite a thermal dipole
mode and measure its oscillation frequency and damping rate. We find an
unexpectedly large heat conduction compared to the homogeneous case. The
enhanced heat conduction in this regime is partially caused by atoms with a
high angular momentum spiraling in trajectories around the core of the cloud.
Since atoms in these trajectories are almost collisionless they strongly
contribute to the heat transfer. We observe a second, oscillating hydrodynamic
mode, which we identify as a standing wave sound mode.Comment: Sumitted to Phys. Rev. Letters, 4 pages, 4 figure
Nonnormal amplification in random balanced neuronal networks
In dynamical models of cortical networks, the recurrent connectivity can
amplify the input given to the network in two distinct ways. One is induced by
the presence of near-critical eigenvalues in the connectivity matrix W,
producing large but slow activity fluctuations along the corresponding
eigenvectors (dynamical slowing). The other relies on W being nonnormal, which
allows the network activity to make large but fast excursions along specific
directions. Here we investigate the tradeoff between nonnormal amplification
and dynamical slowing in the spontaneous activity of large random neuronal
networks composed of excitatory and inhibitory neurons. We use a Schur
decomposition of W to separate the two amplification mechanisms. Assuming
linear stochastic dynamics, we derive an exact expression for the expected
amount of purely nonnormal amplification. We find that amplification is very
limited if dynamical slowing must be kept weak. We conclude that, to achieve
strong transient amplification with little slowing, the connectivity must be
structured. We show that unidirectional connections between neurons of the same
type together with reciprocal connections between neurons of different types,
allow for amplification already in the fast dynamical regime. Finally, our
results also shed light on the differences between balanced networks in which
inhibition exactly cancels excitation, and those where inhibition dominates.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figure
Reaching the hydrodynamic regime in a Bose-Einstein condensate by suppression of avalanche
We report the realization of a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) in the
hydrodynamic regime. The hydrodynamic regime is reached by evaporative cooling
at a relative low density suppressing the effect of avalanches. With the
suppression of avalanches a BEC containing 120.10^6 atoms is produced. The
collisional opacity can be tuned from the collisionless regime to a collisional
opacity of more than 3 by compressing the trap after condensation. In the
collisional opaque regime a significant heating of the cloud at time scales
shorter than half of the radial trap period is measured. This is direct proof
that the BEC is hydrodynamic.Comment: Article submitted for Phys. Rev. Letters, 6 figure
Storing and processing optical information with ultra-slow light in Bose-Einstein condensates
We theoretically explore coherent information transfer between ultra-slow
light pulses and Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) and find that storing light
pulses in BECs, by switching off the coupling field, allows the coherent
condensate dynamics to process optical information. We develop a formalism,
applicable in both the weak and strong probe regimes, to analyze such
experiments and establish several new results. Investigating examples relevant
to Rb-87 experimental parameters we see a variety of novel two-component BEC
dynamics occur during the storage, including interference fringes, gentle
breathing excitations, and two-component solitons. We find the dynamics when
the levels |F=1, M_F=-1> and |F=2, M_F=+1> are well suited to designing
controlled processing of the information. By switching the coupling field back
on, the processed information is rewritten onto probe pulses which then
propagate out as slow light pulses. We calculate the fidelity of information
transfer between the atomic and light fields upon the switch-on and subsequent
output. The fidelity is affected both by absorption of small length scale
features and absorption of regions of the pulse stored near the condensate
edge. In the strong probe case, we find that when the oscillator strengths for
the two transitions are equal the fidelity is not strongly sensitive to the
probe strength, while when they are unequal the fidelity is worse for stronger
probes. Applications to distant communication between BECs, squeezed light
generation and quantum information are anticipated.Comment: 19 pages, 12 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
- …